Some changes may be on the horizon for campus radio station KURE (88.5 FM), pending the passing of a bill that would transfer the majority of the financial burden for the station to the Government of the Student Body.

The two-year funding agreement between GSB and the Inter-Residence Hall Association expires this year, and a bill that is scheduled for a vote at Thursday’s IRHA meeting would call for GSB to begin a five-year process of taking on more financial responsibility for KURE.

For the change to take place, GSB would need to pass a similar bill.

Currently, IRHA funds 60 percent of KURE’s operating expenses, and GSB funds 40 percent. However, GSB writes the checks for all of the station’s capital expenses, usually enough to strike a nearly even balance with IRHA’s financial support.

The new agreement would gradually transfer more funding to GSB. Beginning in 2001, GSB and IRHA would each pay 50 percent of the operating expenses. By 2005, the last year of the agreement, GSB would pay 75 percent of operating expenses, and IRHA would pay 25 percent.

IRHA President Dave Sims said the change in funding would be made gradually to make it more financially manageable for GSB.

Sims said it is more appropriate for GSB to take a larger percentage of funding for KURE.

“It doesn’t necessarily affect residence hall students directly,” he said. “It’s a service geared toward all students, which is more GSB than IRHA.”

GSB President Matt Craft said he did not know if it would be better for KURE to have more funding from GSB, but he said it reaches many Iowa State students.

“I had to agree that it’s not just toward the residence halls anymore,” he said. “It would fall more under GSB’s funding realm than IRHA’s.”

Sims said the change in funding should not affect the way KURE is run. He said they still will receive the same amount of money.

“It’s their financial support, but it doesn’t change anything in there,” he said.

Gordon Ferguson, general manager of KURE, said he had some concerns with the possible change in funding.

“The only thing that worries me is the increased responsibility of GSB, especially in the future when GSB is shouldering most of the funding,” he said. “If it’s not there, it will really hurt us with the way the percentages work.”

Ferguson said almost all of KURE’s funding comes from the two student government bodies, although the station is working to get support from Ames businesses.

One big change KURE would see in the new funding agreement is a shift in authorization. IRHA has sole authorization now, meaning IRHA is the governing body to which the KURE Board of Directors reports. If the new bills are passed, IRHA and GSB would share joint authorization of the station.

Ferguson said he could see some complications arising from joint authorization.

“Getting our authorizations will be a bigger challenge,” he said. “It might double the process time.”

However, Ferguson didn’t think the joint authorization would have a negative impact on KURE.

“As far as hurting the station, I don’t think it will,” he said.

Sims said modifying the authorization would be best for KURE, IRHA and GSB.

“Making it a joint authorization should tie up any loose ends and make KURE a better-represented college station,” he said.

Craft said he did not foresee a joint authorization causing any changes at KURE, except in the case of an emergency.

“I don’t see GSB taking an active role in running KURE or telling them what to do,” he said. “In an emergency, we could have a say in how to get back on track.”

Both Craft and Sims were on IRHA’s Internal Affairs Committee last year when the issue of KURE’s funding agreement was discussed.

Sims said last year’s committee tried to change the agreement but eventually decided to wait until it expired this semester.

“I knew this was going to be one of the bigger challenges as president,” he said. “The first month, I started talking with Matt in addition to my own vice president and financial director. We don’t have to worry about this being done at the end of the year.”

Sims said he is fairly confident the bill will pass both IRHA and GSB. He said if it didn’t, GSB and IRHA would continue to work on a scenario that would be mutually acceptable.